An interior of the Colosseum. The floor is a modern reconstruction; below are the underground vaults and tunnels originally used to house animals and slaves.

The Colosseum or Coliseum, originally known as the Flavian Amphitheatre (Latin: Amphitheatrum Flavium), is the largest amphitheatre built in the Roman empire. Originally capable of seating 50,000 spectators, it was once used for gladiatorial combat. It was built in the 70s AD by Jewish slaves captured at the end of the Great Jewish Revolt.

The Colosseum is located just east of the Roman Forum.

ConstructionConstruction of the Colosseum began under the rule of Emperor Vespasian in AD 72. It was completed by his son, Titus, in 80, with later improvements by Domitian. It was built at the site of Nero's lake below his extensive palace, the Domus Aurea, which had been built covering the slope of the Palatine after the great fire of Rome in 64. Dio Cassius recounts that 10,000 wild animals were killed in the one hundred days of celebration which inaugurated the amphitheatre opening.

History of the name ColosseumThe Colosseum's name has long been believed to be derived from a colossus (a 130-foot or 40-metre statue) of Nero nearby. This statue was later remodeled by Nero's successors into the likeness of Sol or Apollo, the sun god, by adding the appropriate solar crown. Nero's head was also replaced several times by the head of succeeding emperors. At some time during the Middle Ages, the statue disappeared; experts suspect that, since the statue was bronze, it was melted down for reuse. Evidence of its base may still be found between the Colosseum and the nearby Temple of Roma and Venus.

After the colossus' disposal, the link to it seems to have been forgotten over time, and the name was corrupted to Coliseum during the Middle Ages. Both names are frequently used in modern English, but Flavian Amphitheatre is generally unknown. In Italy, it is still known as il colosseo, and other Romance languages have come to use similar forms such as le colisée and el colise.

Description

The inner layers of the Colosseum, showing the construction of the outer layers.

The Colosseum measures 48 metres high, 188 metres long, and 156 metres wide. There are 80 arches on each of the first three levels, totaling 240. The wooden arena floor was 86 metres by 54 metres, and covered by sand. Its elliptical shape kept the players from retreating to a corner, and allowed the spectators to be closer to the action than a circle would allow. Over 100,000 cubic meters of travertine stone was used in its construction.

The Colosseum was ingeniously designed, and most modern stadiums share important features with the Colosseum's structure. Seating (cavea) was divided into different sections. The podium, the first level of seating, was for the Roman senators (many of the last senators of the empire still have their names carved into some of the seats); the emperor's private, cushioned, marble box was also located on this level. Above the podium was the maenianum primum, for the other Roman aristocrats who were not in the senate. The third level, the maenianum secundum, was divided into three sections. The lower part (the immum) was for wealthy citizens, while the upper part (the summum) was for poor citizens. A third, wooden section (the maenianum secundum in legneis) was a wooden structure at the very top of the building, added by Domitian. It was standing room only, and was for lower-class women.

After the Colosseum's first two years in operation, Vespasian's younger son (the newly-designated Emperor Domitian) ordered the construction of the hypogeum (literally meaning "underground"), a two-level subterranean network of tunnels and cages where gladiators and animals were held before contests began. Numerous trap doors in the floor provided instant access to the arena for caged animals and scenery pieces concealed underneath; larger hinged platforms, called hegmata, provided access for elephants and the like.

Today the arena floor no longer exists, though the hypogeum walls and corridors are clearly visible in the ruins of the structure. The entire base of the Colosseum covers an area equivalent to 6 acres (160,000 m²). There are also tunnels, still in existence, configured to flood and evacuate water from the Colosseum floor, so that naval battles could be staged prior to the hypogeum's construction. Recent archaeological research has shown evidence of drain pipes connected to the City's sewer system and a large underground holding tank connected to a nearby aqueduct.

Another innovative feature of the Colosseum was its cooling system, known as the velarium, which consisted of a canvas-covered, net-like structure made of ropes, with a hole in the center. This roof covered two-thirds of the arena, and sloped down towards the center to catch the wind and provide a breeze for the audience. Sailors, standing on special platforms, manipulated the ropes on command. The Colosseum incorporated a number of vomitoria — passageways that open into a tier of seats from below or behind. Each vomitorium was designed so that the immense venue could fill in 15 minutes, and be evacuated in as little as 5 minutes. Each entrance and exit was numbered, as was each staircase.

There were 80 entrances at ground level; 76 of these were used by ordinary spectators. The northern main entrance on the secondary axis was the entrance for the Emperor and his aides, whilst the other three cardinal entrances were most likely used by the elite. Spectators were given tickets in the form of numbered pottery shards, which directed them to the appropriate section and row. The vomitoria quickly dispersed people into their seats and, upon conclusion of the event, disgorged them with abruptness into the surrounding streets (giving rise, presumably, to the name).

Supporting buildingsThe Colosseum and its activities made for a rather large industry in the area. In addition to the amphitheater itself, there were many other buildings built nearby that supported its gladatorial games. Immediately to the east is the remains of the Ludus Magnus, a training school for gladiators, with its own miniature training arena. Other training schools were in the same area, including the Ludus Matutinus, where fighters of animals were trained.

Also nearby was the Castra Misenatium, where the sailors from Misenum who handled the ropes were posted; the Armamentarium, comprising an armory to store weapons; the Summum Choragium, where complex machinery used in a scene was stored; the Saniarium, which had facilities to treat wounded gladiators; and the Spoliarium, where bodies of dead gladiators were stripped of their armor and disposed of.

Later historyThe Colosseum was in continuous use until 217, when it was damaged by fire after a lightning strike. It was restored in 238 and gladiatorial games continued until Christianity gradually put an end to those parts of them which included the death of humans. The building was used for various purposes, mostly venationes, until 524. Two earthquakes (in 442 and 508) caused massive damage to the structure. In the Middle Ages, it was severely damaged by further earthquakes (847 and 1349), and was then converted into a fortress and a Christian church erected in one small part.

The marble that originally covered the façade was reused in constructions or burned to make quicklime. During the Renaissance, but mostly in the 16th and 17th centuries, the ruling Roman families (from which many popes came) used it as a source of marble for the construction of St. Peter's Basilica and the private palazzi of Roman families such as the Barberini: Quod non fecerunt Barbari, Barberini fecerunt; "What the Barbarians didn't do, the Barberini did"

Note the use of coliseus, i.e. which made the name a masculine noun. This form is no longer in use.

A view of the Colosseum at night.

In 1749, in a very early example of historic preservation, Pope Benedict XIV forbade the use of the Colosseum as a quarry. He consecrated the building to the Passion of Christ and installed Stations of the Cross, declaring it sanctified by the blood of the Christian martyrs who were thought to have perished there. Later popes initiated various stabilization and restoration projects. Every Good Friday the pope leads a procession within the ellipse in memory of Christian martyrs.[2]. It is presumed that the majority of Christian martyrdom in Rome took place at the Circus Maximus.

In 2000 there were protests in Italy against the use of the death penalty in countries all over the world (in Italy it was abolished in 1948). Several demonstrations took place in front of the Colosseum. Since that time, as a gesture against capital punishment, the local authorities of Rome change the colour of the Colosseum's night time illumination from white to gold whenever a person condemned to the death penalty anywhere in the world gets their sentence commuted or is released. [3]

According to the current political division of the center of Rome, the Colosseum is placed in rione Monti.

Hollywood and the ColosseumThe Colosseum has a prominent place in many motion pictures. In 1954's Demetrius and the Gladiators Emperor Caligula sentences the Christian Demetrius to fight in the Colosseum. In the Science Fiction film The Core, the Colosseum is destroyed by intense lightning strikes, which blast it to bits. In director Ridley Scott's 2000 film Gladiator, the Colosseum was re-created via computer-generated imagery (CGI) to "restore" it to the glory of its heyday in the 2nd century. However, many of the buildings in the film depicted surrounding the colosseum never existed, and its proximity to the Tiber is also inauthentic.

FloraPlants on the inner walls of the ColosseumThe Colosseum has a wide and well-documented history of flora ever since Domenico Panaroli made the first catalogue of its plants in 1643. Since then, 684 species have been identified there. The peak was in 1855 (420 species), and there are 242 today. Of the species first identified by Panaroli, 200 remain.

The variation of plants can be explained by the change of climate in Rome through the centuries. Additionally, bird migration, flower blooming, and the growth of Rome that caused the Colosseum to not be on the outskirts of the city, as well as deliberate transport of species, are also contributing causes.